Some L.A. homes have increased almost 40% in less than a decade.

Some L.A. homes have increased almost 40% in less than a decade.

June 29, 2018

With houses in the Los Angeles area fetching record prices, sellers pocketed some of the largest profits in the nation in 2017, according to a new report from Zillow. Across L.A. and Orange counties, homeowners last year sold homes for around $137,000 more than the price they paid for the residence, amounting to a 33.1% gain in value.

In the city of L.A., jumps in value were even more dramatic. Prices in 2017 were nearly 40% higher than what the seller paid, with a median dollar increase of $175,000. Greater L.A. was one of just 5 of the nation’s 35 largest housing markets where homeowners saw the price of their home increase by 6 figures between buying and selling.

According to the report, the median length of time L.A. sellers owned their homes before selling was just over 9 years in 2017. That means that many of those who listed houses for sale last year bought during the Great Recession, when prices dropped off from levels that today’s home prices have only recently surpassed.